Coast Guard conducts surge operation in Port of Baltimore

BALTIMORE – The Coast Guard, along with federal, state and local agencies, conducted a joint operation that started Tuesday and ended today at the Maryland Port Administration’s Seagirt and Dundalk Marine Terminals to promote awareness and verify compliance with federal and state intermodal container, truck, air, rail and hazardous material safety regulations.

Inspections on containers and trucks entering and leaving the Port of Baltimore are frequently conducted by individual agencies focusing on a specific part of the overall safety picture, but this multi-agency strike force operation is one in a series of similar initiatives conducted in ports nationwide since September 1998 that brings the whole picture together and reduces the inspection time delay for shippers.

This joint operation is coordinated between agencies employing their individual jurisdictions side-by-side, so that shipments can be simultaneously inspected for compliance with all applicable requirements.

The operation involved the inspection of trucks as they entered and left the marine terminals with shipments from both domestic and international locations. Inspections included verifying proper truck and container documentation, structural integrity of shipping containers, licensing, customs and fuel tax compliance and hazardous material markings, packaging and segregation.

Agencies taking part in the operation include: the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Maryland Transportation Authority Police, Maryland Port Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Transportation Security Administration, and the Maryland State Comptrollers.